“My dear friends, fans and supporters, I am happy to announce that today I signed the IBF contract to fight Enrico Koelling of Germany. As you are well aware of, the winner of this bout will become a mandatory challenger for the IBF light heavyweight title and I can’t wait to get in the ring against such a great opponent. Also, to avoid any confusion, the acceptance of this fight does not affect in any way the legal proceedings that are currently under way with GYM, which will follow its course separately. As per the IBF contract, the IBF/USBA World Title Eliminator will be held in Quebec City on July 29th, 2017. However, the place and day of the fight might change. I hope you will all support me in this crucial fight. I wish you all the best!”

The current IBF light heavyweight champion is Andre Ward, who is also the WBO and WBA champion. Ward is defending his unified titles against Sergey Kovalev on June 17 in a rematch from their first fight last November.

Beterbiev, the current WBA–NABA light heavyweight champion, is 11-0 and a former amateur world champion. Beterbiev last fought back in December when he stopped Isidro Ranoni Prieto in the first round. Koelling already fought this year, beating Ryno Liebenberg via unanimous decision on February 4.